Mets option Trevor Hildenberger to the alternate site, recall Sean Reid-Foley

The Mets have announced that side-arming lefty Trevor Hildenberger was optioned to the alternate training site following yesterday’s loss to the Cubs. Righty Sean Reid-Foley has been recalled from the alternate site to replace Hildenberger on the roster.

Hildenberger was part of the Mets’ parade of poor performance in last night’s game. With the Cubs already up big, he was called upon to soak up some innings in mop-up duty. He already had one successful relief appearance for the Mets under his belt in Friday’s loss to the Rockies, in which he worked around a hit to pitch a scoreless inning, striking out two batters in the process. Unfortunately, yesterday’s outing was not as successful for the 30-year-old. He allowed an inherited runner to score in the fifth on a force out, but otherwise escaped that frame unscathed. But the wheels came off for him in the sixth when he struggled to find his control. He walked the bases loaded and then allowed a grand slam to Javier Baez. After that, he allowed another single and hit a batter with a pitch before having to bailed out of the inning by Aaron Loup.

What perhaps sealed Hildenberger’s fate even more than the dreadful performance was the fact that he threw 44 pitches in the outing, meaning that he would likely be unavailable today and perhaps even beyond that. On a day when Joey Lucchesi is starting for the Mets and the bullpen might need to do some heavy lifting, a move to bolster the relief corps was likely inevitable and Hildenberger was the obvious choice for demotion.

Sean Reid-Foley—a former second-round draft pick acquired from the Blue Jays in the trade that sent Steven Matz to Toronto—now gets his first shot with the big league club this year. Reid-Foley features a four-seam fastball, changeup, and slider, with the latter being his bread-and-butter pitch. Over 71 ²⁄₃ big league innings, Reid-Foley has pitched to a 4.40 ERA with his Achilles’ heel being the walk; he has walked six batters per nine innings over the course of his career. Reid-Foley has primarily been a starting pitcher in his career, but will be called upon out of the bullpen, perhaps as a long man, during this first stint with the Mets.